Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: Moscow Government – Government of Moscow –
The Moscow metro is not only a popular means of public transport, but also a cultural venue for talented Muscovites. The project has been underway in the capital for nine years now “Music in the Metro”, and recently another project for creative people – “Art in the Metro”— celebrated its first anniversary. It united more than 250 artists working in different genres and techniques, who can create paintings at 10 sites at metro stations, as well as take part in off-site events and even try their hand at creating a new design for the Troika card. The second season of the project is currently underway, and the recruitment of artists continues.
A mos.ru correspondent spoke with the participants of the “Art in the Metro” project and found out how they are inspired by the architecture of the stations and passengers rushing about their business.
Pandas on Michurinsky Prospekt
Artist Yulia Ershova painted a passenger reading enthusiastically in a train car, sculptures of Romulus and Remus at the Rimskaya station, and flying seagulls on the ceiling of Mayakovskaya on the Zamoskvoretskaya Line. Another of her paintings depicts three pandas chewing bamboo at the Michurinsky Prospekt station on the Big Circle Line (BCL).
“This is my favorite station. It is decorated in an oriental style: it has red columns and lamps with Chinese ornaments. I thought, what can you imagine in such an environment? Why not put pandas there, who came to
Moscow Zoo from China? Now this painting can be seen at the exhibition “Red” in the gallery of the creative association “Artists of Chertanovo”, – says Yulia Ershova.
She learned about “Art in the Metro” from her artist friends who got into the project during the first recruitment, successfully passed the in-person round and created about 30 works in a year. Yulia Ershova prefers to work in oil, but when she needs to make a quick sketch, she takes up watercolor.
“The artist’s mission is to draw people’s attention to beauty that they may not notice in the rhythm of a big city. I remember a passenger on the Aminyevskaya BKL saw my work on an easel and at first could not understand where such beauty came from. And then she recognized the station ceiling. She often rides here, but did not notice how unusual it is, and now she looked up for the first time,” says Yulia Ershova.
This season she continues to participate in the project. “The metro is interesting to draw, and I am glad that I have been given such a unique opportunity to create in this atmosphere,” the mos.ru interlocutor emphasizes.
“Dostoevskaya” with salt and ink
Another participant of the last season, Ekaterina Bulgakova, was inspired by the Dostoevskaya metro station of the Lyublinsko-Dmitrovskaya line. The artist was struck by its marble slabs. She managed to convey their texture using a special technique.
“To depict a marble pattern, I first began to combine acrylic paints, watercolors and the author’s technique “gallitika”. It uses ink and salt, which gives beautiful textured streaks. Now I plan to further develop this method of drawing,” says Ekaterina Bulgakova.
During her year of participation in the project, she created about 20 works. The artist was especially inspired by the BKL stations. In her paintings, she depicted the art object “Moscow Rings”, located at the entrance to “Nizhegorodskaya”, and the interiors of “Khoroshevskaya”.
“I also dedicated one of my works to passengers. I depicted a stream of people hurrying at the Kitay-Gorod station, wrote down their possible thoughts, and added an old map of the area. It turned out to be a collage. It is impossible to imagine the metro without passengers. People often even came up to watch me draw and asked questions. Someone admitted that they were 20 years old and it was boring to study in their chosen specialty. And someone wanted to learn to draw at 60. I supported them and said that it is not too late to start at any age,” the interviewee notes.
The artist did not initially plan to engage in creative work either. She received a higher education in economics, then completed an internship with teachers from the Russian State University of Art and Industry named after S.G. Stroganov, graduated from the School of Design of the National Research University Higher School of Economics and began to paint. This year, she is preparing to capture the capital’s metro on canvas again.
“The metro is developing at a rapid pace, but the new stations are not inferior to the old ones in terms of design. They are incredible. I am grateful to the project organizers for the fact that we can draw here,” shares Ekaterina Bulgakova.
“Art in the Metro”: the project’s artists worked in a tram depot for the first timeParticipants of the Art in the Metro project depicted stations of the Big Circle LineParticipants of the Art in the Metro project created works of art on digital tablets for the first time
Walk through the tunnel and trains from different eras
Project participant Ekaterina Gavrilova also considers the metro an invaluable source of ideas for paintings. The artist is fascinated by the architecture of the last century, so she is especially inspired by the very first stations and their design.
“The main goal of the Art in the Metro project is to draw people’s attention to what surrounds them every day. For example, you can take a closer look at the doors of the Oktyabrskaya metro station. Every detail in their patterns is thought out, forming a single composition,” says Ekaterina Gavrilova.
The interviewee of mos.ru has been drawing since childhood and was inspired by the works of Isaac Levitan, so she entered the Russian Academy of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture of Ilya Glazunov and successfully graduated from it. Ekaterina Gavrilova has been participating in the project since its inception. In the metro, she has created more than 20 works in a realistic style with elements of minimalism. Most of all, she liked to draw at the Komsomolskaya, Park Kultury and Taganskaya stations of the Circle Line, as well as at Kievskaya on the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya line.
“Thanks to the project, we didn’t just go down to the metro to draw, but went to interesting and unusual events. One night, we visited the tunnel of the Shelepikha station of the Big Circle Line (the Delovoy Tsentr – Shelepikha – Khoroshevskaya section of the Big Circle Line has been temporarily closed since June 22. – Note from mos.ru). We had a couple of hours after the contact rail was disconnected. Under the supervision of the shift supervisor, we walked through the tunnel. In addition, I attended an event at the Izmailovo depot. There, I created a painting called “Two Epochs”, where trains from the last century and our time stand side by side,” recalls artist Ekaterina Gavrilova.
In her work, she uses not only oil, but also watercolour markers, tempera and gouache. She likes to experiment. For example, the artist depicted the Maryina Roshcha BKL station digitally – on a tablet, since she considers the space itself futuristic. And while working at Kievskaya, Ekaterina Gavrilova noticed two city women enthusiastically talking to each other. This scene formed the basis for the work “Morning News”.
“The lobby of the Kyiv station is an atrium space framed by Corinthian capitals in a semicircle. The architects’ concept is a place for a temporary break from the road and meetings. The interior is pompous: columns, mosaics, gold. I think the space itself suggested the plot to me. The most wonderful thing in such walls is to engage in creativity. And passengers feel it. That is why the projects “Art in the Metro” and “Music in the Metro” have so many viewers,” the mos.ru interlocutor notes.
Engage passengers in creativity
Nikolay Bazunov also took part in the first season of the project. He found inspiration in metro trains.
“I like the design of rolling stock from the 1940s to 1970s, which is attractive in its simplicity – smooth lines, round headlights. Thanks to my participation in the “Art in the Metro” project, I visited the Severnoye and Izmailovo depots, where I drew historical trains. I even managed to sit in the driver’s cabin of a retro train that runs on the Sokolnicheskaya line,” the artist says.
Nikolay Bazunov associates the metro with the Great Patriotic War and memories of his relatives. During the bombing, his grandmother and mother hid at the Mayakovskaya station. The artist found a black-and-white photograph taken in 1941 and painted a picture for the anniversary of the Great Victory, where he depicted Muscovites hiding in the metro.
“There is an interesting incident connected with this work. I was painting it at the Park Kultury station and stepped away for five minutes. I came back and there was a girl standing next to the painting and trying to make the image lighter with my brush. She explained that she found the work gloomy. And I smiled,” recalls Nikolai Bazunov.
The artist prefers to work with oil on canvas. He compares his work to a musician’s performance. The palette is a turntable with discs, like a DJ’s, the brush is a conductor’s baton. While working, Nikolai Bazunov stands with his back to the passengers so that they can see his painting and express their opinion.
“I have been participating in the Art in the Metro project since its inception, and have painted about 10 works. This season, I have joined it again not only as a participant, but also as a jury member. I help select artists. It is important to me that a person finds himself in the project, that he finds it interesting, that he can enjoy creativity and inspire others with his example,” emphasizes Nikolai Bazunov.
This year he plans to paint a series of pictures based on a series of science fiction novels about the metro.
The recruitment of artists for the second season of the project “Art in the Metro” is ongoing. To become a participant, you need to apply towebsite. The selection of finalists is carried out by an expert commission with the participation of representatives of the capital Department of Transport and Development of Road Transport Infrastructure and associations “Exhibition halls of Moscow”.
Three new venues for the Art in the Metro project have appeared on the Big Circle LineParticipants of the Art in the Metro project created paintings at the Kitay-Gorod stationPortrait of Dostoevsky and a sketch of a stranger: what works were created by participants of the project “Art in the Metro”Artists of the Art in the Metro project will develop a New Year’s design for thematic Troika cards
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